148 THE HUNTING FIELD 



the wet litter with dry straw, as is too often done by 

 lazy, hiding, hurrying fellows, they dry the wet straw 

 in the air during the day, and it comes again nearly 

 as good as ever at night. 



But here comes the first flight of Grooms, with all 

 the important top-boot bustle that proclaims the 

 coming scarlets. See how they steal along at that 

 " within-themselves sort of pace " peculiar to hunters. 

 Let us step aside under the lea of this old barn, and 

 scan them as they gain the field. 



First, comes Timothy Jones, Paul Poplin's young 

 man, all louped up in gold, with his mare in a white 

 lather, and her mouth nearly deadened with the 

 hauling of Tim's heavy hand. Tim and his master 

 are recruits of the season, the master knowing as 

 much of hunting as the man-boy does of horses. 

 That hat, with the gold threads binding the oval sides 

 to the gilt acorn on the crown is a contrivance of 

 Paul and his sisters, the idea being taken from the 

 Marquis of Dazzleton's footman. Tim's Groom's 

 footman's coat, with the red and blue worsted shoulder 

 knot, and patches of gold lace on the collar and 

 cuffs, would disgrace anything but the rumble of a 

 pony phaeton, and his red-seamed blue trousers and 

 bluchers seem lost for want of the red string of the 

 Italian greyhound. We don't know that we ever saw 

 such an apology for a Groom in our lives, and how 

 Tim will have the face to present that well-lathered 

 mare to his master baffles our comprehension. Poor 

 weak, washy thing ! She has done her day's work 

 already, and another such ride will finish Tim's 

 military-looking over-alls. She has been the laughing- 

 stock of all the knowing ones in coming along. 



This great woman -thighed, bull -headed, bloated, 

 porpoise-looking fellow, with his beastly calves bagging 

 over his lack-lustre, mis-shapen, painted top-boots, is 

 Mr. Spavin, the horse-dealer's man, with a well- 

 shaped screw for sale under him. At first glance you 



